IndianRingNeck.com

Hi, I'm new to the boards and I'm hoping I can find some help here.

I currently have 3 IRn's. One (Riku) I have had since November last year. I got him just as he got off being Hand fed so I think only a few months old. We have bonded really well and he loves spending time with me.

But in the last two weeks I have gotten another two IRN's, as yet unnamed. Both are quite young but timid since their previous owner didn't handle them much. They are brother as sister and obviously get along very well.

My problem is I got them so that Riku could have a little company while I am at work or out but so far they just do not seem to get along. I have been trying to keep Riku in the position of kind of the alpha bird. He gets fed first, gets the most attention and always leaves his cage first.
But when I have them all out together, when they don't go out of their way to avoid each other, Riku and what I think is the Male one of the new birds get into fights. I seperate them when this happens but If they just keep fighting I don't know how I can get them to get along. Am I wasting my time here? All the posts I have seen involve introducing just one new bird but I can't find anything about introducing two. Can anyone give me some advice on how to get them all comfortable with each other?

I'm sorry if I haven't explained myself very well. If anyone needs clarification on anything let me know and I will explain as best I can

It may be too soon to let them out together, they need to get used to each other first, so my advice is to stop letting them out together, keep them in separate cages, only allowing one out at a time. In the wild, adult birds eat first, I don't believe they are necessarily "alpha" like dogs or wolves, but this is simply "pecking order". There is a saying "familiarity breeds contempt", in other words, once one is desensitised to a situation, they ignore it, personally, I would wait more than weeks before allowing them to mix freely. They need to feel comfortable sharing their territory.

sanjays mummi wrote:It may be too soon to let them out together, they need to get used to each other first, so my advice is to stop letting them out together, keep them in separate cages, only allowing one out at a time. In the wild, adult birds eat first, I don't believe they are necessarily "alpha" like dogs or wolves, but this is simply "pecking order". There is a saying "familiarity breeds contempt", in other words, once one is desensitised to a situation, they ignore it, personally, I would wait more than weeks before allowing them to mix freely. They need to feel comfortable sharing their territory.

How long should I wait before having them out together? Their cages are side by side so they can see each other, but not close enough for them to really interact. They were in view of each other for about a week and a half before I started bringing them out at the same time. As of now I'll start taking them out separately, but when should I try this again?

Why not let Riku out with the female , then let the other one out with her separately on different occasions?, but wait another few Weeks first.
Males tend to fight over females, and her brother may be quite possessive over her. Remember, animals don't have the same morals as humans.
I couldn't say how long it will take for the males to accept each others company, you will be the best judge of that, maybe you will observe a more tolerant attitude between them.

sanjays mummi wrote:Why not let Riku out with the female , then let the other one out with her separately on different occasions?, but wait another few Weeks first.
Males tend to fight over females, and her brother may be quite possessive over her. Remember, animals don't have the same morals as humans.
I couldn't say how long it will take for the males to accept each others company, you will be the best judge of that, maybe you will observe a more tolerant attitude between them.

Ok I'll give that a try, the only issue is I'm not certain which is the female. They're both young and neither one has a ring yet, I think I know which is female but unfortunately I can't be sure. is there a way to tell before the ring shows up on the male?

Only DNA testing will do that, unfortunately. I read on here, you can purchase kits, and the testing is inexpensive.